Please login or register.

Login with username, password and session length
Advanced search  

News:

Not a Forum member? You can still subscribe to our Free Newsletter

media

Pages: [1] 2

Author Topic: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"  (Read 13821 times)

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108

I get really tied up in knots about the above. Is anyone else the same? I have held off booking any trips since early November because I had  ENT hospital referrals and an MRI. I now know that the ENT tests and the  MRI are ok but the GP still wants to refer me to a neurologist. I do see a neurologist once a year re. my epilepsy medication and I asked him about the MRI, Parkinsons and the need for a referral. He dismissed it and told me not to worry. I told the GP this but she still wants to refer me. I have to wait until mid Feb for the appointment.

My annual  holiday insurance is due for renewal very soon. I really don't want to have to declare anything which I probably don't have as they will keep it on my record and charge me extra! I often doubt the medical knowledge of the staff who do the assessments anyway.    A friend recently commented to me that most of her friends were very laid back about declaring symptoms/illnesses  to insurers. Perhaps I get too worked up about it? My trips at the moment are all EU anyway so I have the EHIC card which i have just renewed.
Logged

groundhog

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 1766
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #1 on: December 30, 2015, 05:12:56 PM »

Hello - I am totally paranoid about holiday insurance as I have a lot of pre existing conditions.  I have some friends who don't declare but I couldn't cope with the worry of if all .  I've heard of people having sell their house to be repatriated .  I think the EHIC does cover you for free medical treatment but I'm sure there are limitations on repatriation.
Sorry not much help!  I go to a specialised insurer who deals with my condition as they are far more knowledgeable and I have peace of mind .

I know what you mean though as once you mention something that's it £££££

Good luck! 
Logged

dazned

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 1715
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #2 on: December 30, 2015, 05:28:38 PM »

I worked in the travel for years you really must declare anything as unfortunately the insures will use any slightest excuse for not paying out that they can  ???
Ive heard/seen some terrible circumstances occurring . Also another thing to consider with the EU card it only covers medical treatments,some hospitals abroad you have to provide your own food ,linnens etc. Also it wouldn't cover a travel partner having to possibly stay on longer ,flights etc.
This is definitely one area that you should never,ever skimp on !
Logged

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #3 on: December 30, 2015, 05:33:11 PM »

Hello - I am totally paranoid about holiday insurance as I have a lot of pre existing conditions.  I have some friends who don't declare but I couldn't cope with the worry of if all .  I've heard of people having sell their house to be repatriated .  I think the EHIC does cover you for free medical treatment but I'm sure there are limitations on repatriation.
Sorry not much help!  I go to a specialised insurer who deals with my condition as they are far more knowledgeable and I have peace of mind .

I know what you mean though as once you mention something that's it £££££

Good luck!

I really don't think that I currently have anything which would require emergency repatriation but i do get worked up about it.  :-\ I have just got myself a quote (with a fake name) from All Clear. If you buy their gold policy, you do get cover from anything not yet diagnosed because you are waiting for an appointment. Perhaps I should go for that. I can't renew for another month anyway.
Logged

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #4 on: December 30, 2015, 05:42:31 PM »

I worked in the travel for years you really must declare anything as unfortunately the insures will use any slightest excuse for not paying out that they can  ???
Ive heard/seen some terrible circumstances occurring . Also another thing to consider with the EU card it only covers medical treatments,some hospitals abroad you have to provide your own food ,linnens etc. Also it wouldn't cover a travel partner having to possibly stay on longer ,flights etc.
This is definitely one area that you should never,ever skimp on !

Re. the slightest excuse issue. That's why I get tied up in knots. Do they really want to know that you have had a bad cold and a UTI infection  6 months ago? I have heard stories of payouts refused on a brand new condition or accident just because something unrelated hasn't been declared.  I have also  heard real ignorance of the condition when trying to get quotes. Some of their health questions cannot be answered accurately because of their wording.
Re. travel partner: I go on my own or with a friend. If I cancel just before departure due to illness, he/she can't claim as we aren't related
Logged

Joyce

  • Guest
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #5 on: December 30, 2015, 05:46:31 PM »

I agree with dazned. Declare everything! Better safe than sorry. OK premium may be a bit higher, but better that than massive bill for hospitals abroad.  I use an insurance company which specialises in travel insurance for people with medical conditions.

Insurers ask about referrals, GP visits. Colds maybe not, but a UTI infection may have to be declared.
Logged

dazned

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 1715
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #6 on: December 30, 2015, 05:50:45 PM »

Again unfortunately we never know if we will need repatriating ! Simple slip/trip broken hip etc. Accidents happen all too often ,I dont want to sound doom and gloomy but if the unthinkable happens you need the best cover possible.
Logged

Bettyboo

  • Guest
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #7 on: December 31, 2015, 08:51:07 AM »

I just wanted to add - with regard to waiting until you have had further tests so as to decide whether to declare them or not - waiting would not make any difference to the result if you took out the policy and subsequently had a claim. I worked in the insurance industry for thirty years. If you had a claim then the insurers would obtain a copy of your medical records and would be aware of all the tests etc. you have had. You would probably have to sign a consent form to release the medical records as part of the claims process, if not the claim would not be considered. They would not consider the claim just on the basis of the proposal. (Hope that makes sense).

BB
Logged

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #8 on: December 31, 2015, 03:01:22 PM »

I just wanted to add - with regard to waiting until you have had further tests so as to decide whether to declare them or not - waiting would not make any difference to the result if you took out the policy and subsequently had a claim. I worked in the insurance industry for thirty years. If you had a claim then the insurers would obtain a copy of your medical records and would be aware of all the tests etc. you have had. You would probably have to sign a consent form to release the medical records as part of the claims process, if not the claim would not be considered. They would not consider the claim just on the basis of the proposal. (Hope that makes sense).

BB

Please clarify this. I already have an annual policy which I took out nearly a year ago when I did not know that I would need these referrals. The tests so far haven't actually resulted in any new condition being found/diagnosed. i can't declare a condition which doesn't exist. I did make a claim 18 months ago for a vomiting bug which occurred on holiday and that was paid without any problem.
Just out of interest: I was unwell on holiday this year but didn't need to make a claim. It was caused by a UTI infection and my EHIC card covered the treatment. Would you think that a woman should declare a UTI (or any menopause related symptom) when renewing travel insurance?
When i see budget travel insurance offers, I do wonder who buys them. Surely everyone over about 30 must have at at least 1 pre existing condition.
If someone renews and honestly reports a hospital referral, what are they supposed to say if no illness is actually diagnosed/found. ie a false alarm
Logged

Ju Ju

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2973
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #9 on: December 31, 2015, 05:55:33 PM »

Surely all you have do is answer all questions on the form honestly and completely. Sadly you do have to pay higher premiums if you have had or have serious health conditions and as you get older. We have ongoing worldwide travel insurance until we are 70, connected to my DH's work before he retired. They do not want to know about new health conditions.

Because we now own our house and needed to reduce costs, we decided not to afford critical illness insurance as well as life insurance and opt for just life insurance. Fine for DH, but one firm refused to insure me and another doubled the premiums for just life insurance, because I had had to have 'oxygen therapy' in hospital for asthma, even though it was only once. Needless to say I stuck with what I've got, critical illness and life insurance. It's simply a waste of money not declaring conditions, because they won't pay out.
Logged

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #10 on: December 31, 2015, 06:54:06 PM »

Surely all you have do is answer all questions on the form honestly and completely. Sadly you do have to pay higher premiums if you have had or have serious health conditions and as you get older. We have ongoing worldwide travel insurance until we are 70, connected to my DH's work before he retired. They do not want to know about new health conditions.

Because we now own our house and needed to reduce costs, we decided not to afford critical illness insurance as well as life insurance and opt for just life insurance. Fine for DH, but one firm refused to insure me and another doubled the premiums for just life insurance, because I had had to have 'oxygen therapy' in hospital for asthma, even though it was only once. Needless to say I stuck with what I've got, critical illness and life insurance. It's simply a waste of money not declaring conditions, because they won't pay out.

Insurers always ask you to declare conditions such as stroke, heart conditions, cancer etc. Fortunately I haven't had any but I would always declare them if I did. They also ask about hospital visits even if they are just outpatient referrals so I would declare these if I could name a condition. However some are just a precaution and no diagnosis results. I have never had critical illness as I have always been a bit suspicious about its value. My pension scheme has an insurance element which would pay my mortgage if i died suddenly. The mortgage is very small now in contrast to the value of the property.
Logged

Bettyboo

  • Guest
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #11 on: January 01, 2016, 08:34:52 AM »

Hi Katejo - sorry I didn't want to worry you, but really just to reinforce what Dazned had said above - that insurers sometimes find ways to avoid claims. I perhaps should have said 'could' get copies of your medical records rather than 'would' get copies, as obviously the smaller claims are processed just on the basis of medical reports of the incident claimed. I think you would probably have less of an issue with an accident-type claim or a normal holiday-type illness (sickness, UTI, etc.). They are more likely to investigate the larger claims and those which are unusual and perhaps may (in their minds) be related to pre-existing conditions, e.g. if someone had a heart attack they may investigate whether they had experienced heart problems previously.

You need to look at the wording of the question on the proposal form regarding disclosure of pre-existing conditions. A lot of the insurers now give advice on what they consider should be disclosed. For example, last year OH walked the Camino and I took out a travel insurance for him in case he needed to be airlifted off a mountain. He has medication for high blood pressure, but the question on the (online) proposal form stated that routine medication for BP, statins, etc. did not need to be disclosed. Of course, the policy was never tested as he suffered nothing more than the loss of a couple of toenails. That is the problem with policies, you never know how good they are until you need to claim.

Logged

Joyce

  • Guest
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #12 on: January 01, 2016, 10:26:30 AM »

I had to declare I was menopausal as I was taking HRT. I expect the reason being that HRT could cause other health issues. Also had to declare anxiety. It is then up to insurers to decide whether they will cover you or not. I had no additional premium to pay, but it was shown as medical condition on my policy.

I also had declare a chest xray which I was waiting for & told to get back in touch with the results. Until results were received they wouldn't insure any chest condition. Xrays were fine & they added that to my insurance.
Logged

Katejo

  • Member
  • *
  • Posts: 2108
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #13 on: January 01, 2016, 10:45:26 AM »

I had to declare I was menopausal as I was taking HRT. I expect the reason being that HRT could cause other health issues. Also had to declare anxiety. It is then up to insurers to decide whether they will cover you or not. I had no additional premium to pay, but it was shown as medical condition on my policy.

I also had declare a chest xray which I was waiting for & told to get back in touch with the results. Until results were received they wouldn't insure any chest condition. Xrays were fine & they added that to my insurance.

I am not taking HRT so don't think i would say anything about that. All Clear insurance says that it will cover you for tests awaiting results as long as you get their Gold policy. Was anxiety an official GP diagnosis? I am sometimes a bit anxious but it has never stopped me going on holiday.
Logged

wombat62

  • Guest
Re: "Pre existing conditions, holiday insurance and hospital referrals"
« Reply #14 on: January 01, 2016, 11:03:17 AM »

Usually meno is covered except if you have osteoporosis, I guess you are more at risk of breaking something.

Many conditions even if you have medication are covered unless you've been hospitalised. Although I called my usual co once I knew about the gallstone and they wouldn't cover even when I offered to pay more! So had to call another one who noted it and no extra charge, however, I doubt I'd get covered now after the attacks.

One of the questions is have you had gallbladder surgery, I'm assuming there is a period when they won't cover you in case of stones in the duct or complications? I'll need insurance at some point this year but it's always scary asking the question to these people!

I know someone who has a injury and can't get insurance on that part of their body even if they got ran over or something happened that wasn't a fault of the condition. Surely all insurance is risk based and you should be able to get it even if it cost more? Travel insurance is very pricey in Oz, twice as much for a single trip as I used to pay for an annual policy in the UK.
Logged
Pages: [1] 2